Karen Piranian Burgman was a winner of the BCSO’s Youth Concerto Competition in 1999, performing the first movement of Robert Schumann’s Piano Concerto in A minor at the Children’s Concert that year. A graduate of Oberlin Conservatory, Karen has won numerous prizes for her collaborative piano playing. She was honored as an Ovation Award finalist at Verizon Hall in 2015 for her impact as a music educator. She has performed with renowned artists across the United States and plays in several chamber ensembles in the Philadelphia area.

Stephen Duffy won the BCSO’s solo audition for the Children’s Concert in 1983, performing the 3rd movement of George Gershwin’s Piano Concerto in F. Born into a musical family in Philadelphia, Stephen was a scholarship student at the Settlement Music School, where he has taught for 15 years. He was a winner of the Philadelphia Orchestra Children’s Auditions and performed with that orchestra as a 13-year-old in 1984. He received his bachelor’s degree in piano performance from Oberlin College and Conservatory and performs as a piano soloist and church organist throughout the region.